Research Progress on the Indirect Hydrogenation of Carbon Dioxide to Methanol

Xian-Long Du, Zheng Jiang, Dang Shen Su, Jian-Qiang Wang

First published: 21 December 2015   DOI: 10.1002/cssc.201501013

Abstract

Methanol is a sustainable source of liquid fuels and one of the most useful organic chemicals. To date, most of the work in this area has focused on the direct hydrogenation of CO₂ to methanol. However, this process requires high operating temperatures (200–250 °C), which limits the theoretical yield of methanol. Thus, it is desirable to find a new strategy for the efficient conversion of CO₂ to methanol at relatively low reaction temperatures. This Minireview seeks to outline the recent advances on the indirect hydrogenation of CO₂ to methanol. Much emphasis is placed on discussing specific systems, including hydrogenation of CO₂ derivatives (organic carbonates, carbamates, formates, cyclic carbonates, etc.) and cascade reactions, with the aim of critically highlighting both the achievements and remaining challenges associated with this field.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cssc.201501013/full